But he thinks he might need her
by chrisrocks36
Summary: Finn leaves Rachel heartbroken and she finds safety in Puck. Epic Puckleberry FRIENDSHIP, but a special friendship! Nothing more. Finchel OTP. Read inside for more info. PLEASE R&R! Takes place after Hell-o
1. Chapter 1

Hi everyone! So this is my new story! Some people may know I have recently jumped off the Puckleberry ship and sailed to Finchel. But the thing is, I still love Puckleberry dearly, so I decided to incorporate my Puckleberry love with my Finchel love. So this story is ONLY about P/R friendship. There is no romance. I know Finn seems like a douche right now, but F/R end up being the OTP. Just give it time. But this isn't any Puckleberry friendship story, this is EPIC Puckleberry friendship. I'm sure some of you aware of Lea Michele and Jonathon Groff's epic friendship and that is somewhat how I am making the P/R friendship.

Please R&R! Since it is almost summer I am able to update much more frequently. The more reviews, the faster the update, I PROMISE! My goal is 5 reviews per chapter. I know you are capable of that! Please!

Disclaimer: if you honestly think I am holding any claim to Glee, please check into the nearest mental hospital. I am writing FANFICTION.

Rachel feels Finn's thumb stroking hers and she thinks she actually might lift off the ground, the happiness she feels is elevating her so much. She is walking down the school's main hallway, during passing time, with her hand intertwined with Finn's. _Finn Hudson. _It's not even a dream, which is what surprises her the most, this is real. She is really dating Finn Hudson. And has been, for a month now. It seems doesn't even seem plausible. The hunky quarterback falls for the geeky outcast. It is so unbelievably cliché. It sounds like something out of a crappy love story. But the thing is, it's her love story. It is everything she ever hoped love would be. So as she spins the dial to her locker and opens it and Finn sends her a goofy smile before reaching in to get all the books he knows she needs for her next class, she can't help but feel her heartbeat spin widely out of control. It's one of those things she can't help. She leans forward to kiss him softly, before pulling away and smiling up at him from under her eyelashes. He sends her his signature grin that makes her stomach flip. A crowd of 3,000 people watching her belt out Don't Rain on My Parade doesn't faze her in the slightest, but seeing an awkward clumsy 16 year old boy smile sends her into a tailspin.

"See you after class" he whispers, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear before disappearing into the crowd of high school students. Rachel sighs, a sigh plucked straight from a romantic movie, and glides into her classroom. It really feels as if she is gliding.

She knows the teacher is talking and she knows she should be listening, Geometry is her worst class, but she just can't keep that goofy smile out of her mind. Even the flicker of those teeth wipes all other information out of her mind. So when she leaves, her heart is beating in excitement to see the real smile. He always meets her outside of Geometry. But she flies out of the classroom, only to stumble to a halt when no tall, clumsy boy is there to meet her. She looks around anxiously, hoping to see him jogging to catch her, but none of the surrounding people surpass 6 feet. She thinks he must just be running late. It really doesn't make sense since this is his free period, but something must have come up. So she lets her shoulder fall, but only fractionally, and she walks dejectedly to her locker. It feels foreign to retrieve her own binders, but she does so without complaint. The disgruntlement she feels is unfair, he has been nothing short of perfection for the past month, and failing to meet her outside of her class once is not cause for anger.

So she closes her locker and shuffles to the auditorium. Now it is her free period and, as always, she is planning to practice in the auditorium. Her ideas for Glee aren't going to get accepted without practice, are they now? Not that they will anyway, no one actually likes her. So she attempts to balance her plethora of musical sheets and binders in one hand as she struggles to turn the door handle. Normally Finn is an extra hand. She succeeds with her mission and quickly slides through the open door. The struggle of holding her binders had been a waste though, since they all go tumbling to the floor with a thud as soon as she enters the auditorium. A choked gasp escapes her mouth and she feels the ability to move evade her.

"Finn?" she chokes, grasping onto one of the auditorium chairs in hopes to remain upright. Up on the stage, in front of her very eyes, under the spotlight, she sees her boyfriend, _her _boyfriend, tangled in a mess of limbs. All she can make out of the figure underneath the large boy's body is a mess of blonde hair. Perfectly blonde hair. And a small rounded bump protruding from under her yellow dress. And she knows, she knows immediately who the culprit is. The culprit who is sucking her boyfriend's face off. Quinn Fabray. She hears Finn gasp for air and his head whips around to look at Rachel, directly in the eyes.

"Rachel?' he exclaims, desperately trying to refill his lungs with the oxygen he lost from attaching his face to the blonde's. Rachel feels her arm de-attach from the armrest of the chair and it falls helplessly to her side. Her face crumples and the tears start to cascade helplessly down her cheeks. She knows trying to stop them would be useless; she has to wait for them to run out.

Her music papers pushed out of her mind, she whips around and dashes through the auditorium door, flying down the hallway. She refuses to turn around. She doesn't know where her feet are taking her, she simply follows their lead. She can feel the tears gaining power and she chokes on a sob. She prays her feet will lead her to their destination soon, since she can feel the heat of McKinley High's eyes on her. She is aware everyone will know about this by the end of the day. It is inevitable. With a school filled with gossip piranhas like Jacob Ben-Israel there isn't much she can do. He was probably behind the curtain the whole time.

Suddenly her feet take a sharp left and throws open a door in front of her to reveal the music room. She surveys the seemingly empty room, before collapsing onto the piano bench. She buries her head in her arms and lets a sob escape her, as her tiny body convulses under the intensity of the sob. She feels nauseous. She feels weary. She feels adrenalized. She hates this feeling. It must be heartbreak. Another sob racks her body, but is cut short by a throat clearing from the back corner of the room. Rachel jerks her head off the piano and whips around to face the throat-clearer.

She is facing Noah Puckerman.

"Noah?" she chokes, desperately trying to wipe away the unattractive wetness dripping down her face. Puck throws an awkward smile at her.

"So…did Barbara Streisand die or something?" Puck mumbles, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. Rachel feels her face crumple again and she emits a strangled sob.

"Wait…no, shit! I'm sorry Rachel! I didn't know she died! Look I'm sure she is in a better place where she can sing songs like all the time and stuff and be in musicals and…" Noah babbles frantically, but trails off when a smile crosses Rachel's features.

"Shut it, Puckerman" she says weakly, wiping a few of the tears traveling down her cheeks away. Puck smirks at her, but a worried look is still prominent in his face.

"If she didn't die…then why are you like crying out your body weight?" Puck asks, raising himself off the chair and taking a step closer to Rachel.

"I…" Rachel begins, but can't bring herself to say those four words. Four _evil _words. Puck looks at her expectantly, moving a small step closer. Rachel takes a deep breathe, fresh tears forming in her eyes.

"Finn…" she begins again, with not avail. Puck furrows his eyebrows.

"Finn…?" he presses, moving two steps closer.

"Finn…cheated" and that is all she can admit before her body is enveloped in another wave of sobs. The reality finally hits her. Finn _cheated _on her, with Quinn Fabray. The man whom she had sworn she would marry and grow old with, posing for the paparazzi as Hollywood's power couple. The man she would relent to live a life with, sans the Hollywood status, had lied and deceived her. She could no longer suppress the sobs as they flooded to the surface. She felt a shift in the balance of the bench and heat radiating next to her. She glanced up from under her arms to see Puck had taken a seat next to her, a look of shock on his face.

"Wait…Finn cheated on you? Finn Hudson? With who?" Puck said roughly, looking awed. Rachel opens her mouth to snarl the name, but then shuts it quickly, realizing this information could hurt Noah as much as it has hurt her. Quinn was carrying his baby. She spares a glance at him to see his eyes searching her face for the answer. His forehead wrinkles in confusion, and then suddenly all emotion clears his face and Rachel knows he knows. She swears, for a moment there, she can see Noah. She sees hurt and anger and confusion etched into the contours of his face. But as quickly as it came, it disappears and Puck returns. He takes a shallow breathe and composes his face so it seems to be a look of indifference.

"Oh," is all he says. He looks away from Rachel, intensely focusing on the chair in the far back of the room. Rachel feels another tear fall, but this time it isn't for her, but for Puck. She was well aware of his desire for her and the baby, to be the father to the family he had never had.

"So I guess this kind of sucks for both of his," he says hoarsely, cracking a desperate smile at her. She flashes a smile back, both of them knowing the falseness of the smiles. It is a mask, a desperate attempt to numb the pain. Suddenly the moment of sorrow is broken by a frantic pounding on the door.

"Rachel?" a voice calls desperately through the door, followed by more pounding. Rachel stiffens sharply and feels a fresh wave of emotion crash over her.

"It's Finn," she hisses, surveying the room desperately for an escape.

"I got this," Puck growls, shooting off the wooden bench.

"Wait, Noah!" Rachel calls sharply, reaching out to wrap her fingers around his wrist to stop him. He looks at her confusion.

"Don't let him in here," she whispers anxiously, "if I see him, I might just run back into his arms like I always do. I need to stay strong" Noah smirks and flexes his gargantuan arm muscles.

"No problem babe" he says calmly, nearly trembling with anticipation as he throws the door open, making sure to block Finn's view of Rachel.

"Hey buddy!" Puck exclaims with false enthusiasm, Rachel covers her mouth to muffle her giggle.

"Move it, Puck" Finn growls attempting to push past Puck. Puck stands his ground, muscles stiffening.

"Know what Finny? I don't really think so. Since remember how when I slept with Quinn and you punched my face off, or tried to, because you thought we betrayed you? Well there's girl in here who is your fucking girlfriend who apparently just saw getting on with who? Oh yeah, Quinn Fabray" Puck smirks, but the pure unadulterated anger with visible in his eyes.

"Know what, Puck? Just shut the hell up! You don't know what you're talking about!" Finn screams furiously, ramming into Puck who stumbles backwards, sprawling onto the floor, hitting his head with a smack against the tile. Finn tumbles down next to him, his face smacking against the tile as blood begins to fall freely from his nose. Puck sits up slowly, looking around dazedly and rubbing the back of his head. He glanced around and took in his surrounding. Suddenly anger reemerges on his face and springs up to tackle Finn, slamming his fast against his jaw. Finn lets out a thud but pushes Puck off and attempts to struggle his way on top of Puck, raising his fist for a punch.

"STOP IT!" a watery voice shrieks from behind them. Puck and Finn freeze in their positions to stare at the tiny brunette who is glowering, unshed tears glinting in her eyes, "Just stop!" And she spins around flies from the room, her sob not going unheard by the two boys.

They remain interlocked in their positions for a moment, until Finn lets his shoulder slump and he stands up, awkwardly brushing himself off. Puck sits up, massaging the back of his head.

"Sorry," Finn mutters, and disappears through the door without another word. Puck watches him go with no regret. Yesterday, he would have felt like an ass for punching Finn after the baby drama, but today, Mr. Perfect has no hold over him, no power. He is no better than Puck. Puck can no longer ignore the throbbing at the back of his head. He knows he should go to the nurse, but if he tells them he got in another fight, they will probably suspend him. He can't take another night of his mom's heartbroken looks. Ever since Quinn moved in it is all he ever sees. So he decided to ignore the pain, both in his heart and in his head.

_It's not like I loved Quinn or anything_ he thinks to himself, strolling through the door into the now deserted hallway. The bell must have rang, but Mrs. Greenspan won't care if he misses class. It's not as if he shows up more than twice a week anyway. So he shuffles down the hallway, angrily kicking a plastic cup against the wall.

_I didn't love her. I couldn't have loved her. I was just horny. That's why I thought about her all the fucking time. _He repeated those words to himself until they seemed to have no meaning anymore. But as hard as he tried, he couldn't get that feeling out of his chest. The feeling that he had just lost something, something he wasn't sure he could get back. Because Quinn was the one girl who wasn't willing to fall into his arms and get lost in his sea of compliments and false smiles. His winks full of lies and deceit. His ability to hold a girl so tightly against his chest they thought he would never let them go, but he always did. Puck knew he was a jerk. He had known since the day his father called him an ass-faced little bastard. He has looked up the meaning of bastard later that day. And then an hour later, his father was gone. He was 8, and he hadn't understood why his mom had cried and cried. He had gone into her room looked her and the eyes and said.

"_My teacher told me you only cry when you're sad. Why are you crying? Aren't you happy? Daddy is finally gone. Now he can't hurt us anymore. Me or you or that little baby in your belly. I don't miss him" _He had fallen asleep curled against his mother that night as she cried softly. But she told him now she was crying tears of happiness. But that day had changed him. That day had changed him from Noah to Puck. The hurt he felt just wouldn't subside. He got older and tried alcohol and drugs, sex and lies, and they did make him feel better. For the night. In the morning he would wake up with the same pain as he had before he got high, or drunk, or filled with ecstasy. So he does the same thing to the people around him. He wanted someone to understand the pain he feels every time he walked past his mother sleeping, with the other half of the bed empty. The way he feels every time he was at football practice, or baseball practice, or basketball practice and he sees all those 10 year old practicing with their dads. The way he feels when he hears anyone mention their dad. He just wants someone to understand him. He thought after Quinn's parents kicked her out she might, and sometimes it seemed like she did, but underneath it all she didn't. She missed her house and her clothes. Her car and her friends. But Noah realized she never really looked up to her parents. At least not the way Puck looked up to his dad.

But 5 minutes ago, the look of Rachel's face, the anger and the hurt, he saw himself for a moment. She was confused and scared. Finn was her safety net, the boy who wouldn't drop her. The boy who accepted her for who she was. Just like his dad. But now Finn was gone, and she was alone. The way Puck was. So Puck makes a u-turn in the hallway and looks for any sign of the brunette. Because he thinks, my god, he may have just found the person who can understand him the way no one else has. He stops and swivels around on his toes to look for any sign of her. Then he sees the janitor closet door is open just a crack, and he hears a muffle sob break through the silence of the hallway.

He shoves his hands deep into his pockets and makes his way to the edge of the door.

"Rachel?" he calls quietly. The sobbing stops. He hears a sharp intake of breath.

"What do you want, Noah?" she says back coldly. He hears her shakily breathe in again and the quiet sniffle of her nose.

"I wanted to say…that Finn is an ass. And…I know before I said we couldn't be friends…but if you like…need someone…I guess I can be there for you" Puck mumbles. For some reason his heart is pounding against his chest, as if he is anxious for her answer. He doesn't know why. But he thinks…he might need her. Because right now, no one will talk to him. And the loneliness is unbearable. It is like a knife penetrating through every nerve in his body, blinding him with pain. He never realized what life is like without friends, without anyone. He thought he had Quinn, he thought he had found the girl he truly loved, but the girl sniffling in the janitor's closet disproved that theory. He realized this is how Rachel must every single day of high school. Lost and confused. And the worst part was she didn't do anything to deserve this torture. And now Puck knows, he knows he has to make it up to her. He has to try,

"Why would you do that for me Noah? It is obvious you don't like me. I think my hundreds of shirts stained with food coloring and corn syrup prove that fact" she snaps. Noah pushes the door open to reveal her hugging her knees tightly against her chest, as if trying to hold herself together and stop the hole in her heart from reopening. Her eyes are bloodshot and swollen, and her hair is clinging desperately to the tears sliding down her cheeks. Noah sighs and slips into the closet, sitting down on a stool next to her.

"Because I never understood how you felt before. God, if I were you I would have socked me in the face by now. Having no friends sucks. Being betrayed by the person you loved sucks. This," he motions to their position in the closet, "sucks. And I sure as hell need someone right now, and by the looks of things so do you" Noah inhales quickly, refusing to release his breath until she responds. He deserves some form of pain. She looks him up and down, as if surveying his friendship capability. A look of dejection crosses her features and he is sure she is going to tell him to leave, to get the hell out.

Instead, she sighs and lays her head softly on his shoulder, her hair splaying onto his neck, tickling his collar.  
"Is that a yes?" he asks hopefully, cautiously slipping an arm over her shoulder. She smiles up at him and nods into his shoulder.

They stay there, in that closet, for another hour. He reminds her she is missing class but she shrugs. She is acing English anyway. Puck is less than surprised. The comfort of having each other, just knowing someone will be there to call, to vent about their day, to share inside jokes with, to cry with, to laugh with, is reason enough to miss class. For them both.


	2. Chapter 2

Hey everyone! So I have to say, I am rather disappointed about the reviews I have gotten. A total of one. Thank you, DarkestAngel11. But the thing is I love this story so much, I my muse doesn't depend as much on reviews. But that doesn't mean stop reviewing, because the speed of my updates depends on the amount of reviews. And I'm out of school so if I get enough reviews I can potentially see this being updated the next day. And also I understand why some people wouldn't want to read this since there is no Puckleberry romance, and it has Finchel, or will anyway. But it has gotten a decent amount of hits so please review!

By the way I realize I didn't give you a good background to the story during the last chapter, since I was so excited to start the story, so here is the background.

Basically, I hate the way they handled the aftermath of babygate. Puck and Quinn were suddenly bf/gf with no explanation, then they hated each other? And there was no closure with Finn/Quinn, so I just going AU from after baby gate, with Finchel and Quinn living with Puck.

Disclaimer: I marched all the way to Fox and demanded Glee. No dice. Still don't own it.

Extra Disclaimer: I just updated my computer to the new type of Microsoft word and I have no idea how to use it whatsoever. So if there are very strange typing errors or indents or whatever, I'm very sorry. I don't understand beta-ing, so that doesn't help. Just consider yourselves warned.

When Puck had told Rachel they could be friends, not even friends, more that he would be there for her, he hadn't fully understood the Rachel definition of friends. Puck had been referring to a quick nod in the hallway, a quaint 'hey' or 'sup' once or twice in passing and maybe occasionally have a full-blown conversation. Just some form of communication, so neither of them felt completely alone in the world.

Unluckily for Puck, Rachel had other ideas.

"_Fuck…hello?" _

"_Fuck? I don't think beginning a conversation with profanity is really acceptable Noah" _

"_Then don't call me at 7 in the fucking morning on a Saturday! Who is this anyway?"_

"_Who do you think it is? As if anyone you are in contact with knows the word profanity"_

"_Rachel?"_

"_Ding"_

"_Why the hell are you calling me?"_

"_I was wondering if you wanted to accompany on a morning jog around Lima"_

"_The fuck?"_

"…_I don't really know how to respond to that"_

"_Why the hell would I want to "jog" with you? Not only does that sound gay as hell, but it's 7 in the fucking morning"_

"_Well as potential stars, it is vitally important we keep ourselves in shape. Not only for appearance, which shamefully is a key factor in stardom, but because a healthy body is a healthy mind and the more stamina I have the longer I can hold my notes and strive to hit new ones. You would be surprised how many studies show that"_

"_Shit fine! If I go will you stop talking?"_

"_Well after a few miles it will be strenuous to talk and run at the same time if that's what you're referring to…"_

"_Great. I'll be over in 20 minutes" _

So here they were, on a Saturday morning, one day after the "incident" as they referred to it, running around Lima. And the worst part was, Rachel was kicking Puck's ass.

"Holy shit Rachel, do you ever take a break?" Puck wheezes, grasping onto the nearest tree in effort to keep himself on two feet. Rachel spins on her heel to face him, still jogging in place.

"Noah! Don't stop! If you let your blood pressure lower too quickly then,"

"Rachel, please stop talking" Noah groans, collapsing onto the ground in front of the tree. Rachel sighs, rolling her eyes and plops down stubbornly onto the ground next to him. Puck looks up at her and sees anger and frustration etched into the contours of her face, and what seems to be angry tears flooding her vision.

"Noah, I don't understand why we have to stop. We were doing quite well and I don't always the opportunity to jog with someone else, since as you know I am not exactly well liked by the town's population. And when you go jogging with someone it isn't right to force them compromise their ways and cause them possible anguish" Rachel snaps, finally exhaling and looking pointedly away from Noah so he can not see the tears beginning to slip down her cheeks. Noah sits in his spot, stunned by the outburst.

"…I guess we don't have to stop" Puck mumbles awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. He glances cautiously over at Rachel who is sitting stock still, quiet tears dripping down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry" she whispers so quietly, Puck almost thinks he imagined it, "I'm so sorry Noah. You are the one person who is actually talking to me and here I am, taking all my anger out on you. It's not your fault Finn cheated on me." Puck sighs and leans back against the tree. He was kind of hoping he wouldn't have to deal with a Berry brain explosion…again.

"I talked to Quinn last night" he says quietly, feeling guilt rack his body for not telling her sooner.

"I kind of assumed. You do live with her" Rachel murmurs back, idly playing with a piece of grass, "I was just waiting to see if you were going to mention anything"

"Yeah well, you aren't the only one who got their fucking heartbroken" Puck spits bitterly, not even bothering to acknowledge the guilt he feels for yelling at Rachel.

~Last Night~

_Noah sits on the couch, letting the words the words being emitted from the television set pass over him. It is 7 o'clock and Quinn isn't home yet. It is Friday night so he should be out partying, but he really hasn't had any interest since Quinn moved in. He would rather spend the night in with her. Another 10 minutes pass by and finally he hears the doorknob turn and footsteps echo through the empty house. _

"_Quinn?" he calls out, part of him praying it isn't really her._

"_Yeah, who else would it be? Your mom and sister are at the girl scouts sleepover thing" Quinn responds and he hears her raiding the fridge._

"_Quinn, can you come in here?" Puck asks, trying to keep his voice collected._

"_Sure?" she calls back, sounding unsure, but walks into the living room anyway. _

"_Quinn…I talked to Rachel today" Puck says, implication and defeat prominent in his voice. He can tell from Quinn's face she knows exactly what he is talking about._

"_Oh," she says hoarsely, swallowing loudly, "So then…I guess you know about…Finn and I" Puck nods, unable to form words. _

"_I…I'm so sorry. If you see Rachel again, tell her that. I didn't mean to hurt her, I swear. She actually has been one of the only people who is being supportive and nice to me. I wouldn't deliberately try to hurt. I didn't know Finn was going to be in the auditorium, I promise. But he was…and he just started saying how much I h-hurt him and I t-told him I still loved h-him…and he k-kissed me! I n-never meant to hurt anyone. W-we didn't even get far R-Rachel walked in, r-right after he kissed me and" Quinn entire body is heaving with the sobs that are interrupting her explanation. Puck tries to stay angry, he tries to ignore the pain etched across her face and the desire to hold her against him and whisper words of comfort. Unable to control his sympathy anymore, he pulled Quinn tightly against his chest, allowing her to soak through his shirt. Quinn collapses into his embrace and he lets her stay there._

"_I loved you, you know" he whispers quietly into her ear after several minutes of silence except for Quinn's sobs. Quinn snaps her head up, to look into his eyes._

"_Really?" she murmurs back, wiping her eyes. _

"_Yeah," he mumbles, rubbing comforting circles on her back, "But I guess I always kind of knew you loved Finn. He was your knight in shining armor. I was the loser in tin foil" Quinn lets out a bark of laughter and falls onto the couch, rubbing the bridge of her nose._

"_It would be so much easier if I loved you, wouldn't it?" she says, false humor in her voice. Puck smirks at her and sits next to her._

"_Yeah, probably" he agrees, laughing brokenly, "But you know, it wouldn't be Lima if this situation wasn't totally fucked up" Quinn smiles sadly up at him, nodding._

"_No, it wouldn't" she agrees, but the slight smile disappears from her face to be replaced with a look of anguish and guilt, "I really screwed up, didn't I?" _

"_If by screwed up you mean sabotaged the only real relationship the only girl who has been nice to you and supported you and has no real friends in the world, then yeah, I'd say you screwed up" Puck says bitterly. He knows he is being a jackass, but he was the one who sat with Rachel for an hour in the janitor's closet, listen to her cry about the very girl sitting next to him. _

_Quinn's face crumples and fresh tears spring into her eyes._

"_I can't believe I did that" Quinn whispers tearfully, burying her head in her hands, "They really loved each other, didn't they?"_

"_Yeah, I think they really did" Puck murmurs, placing a comforting hand on Quinn's back again. He isn't mad at her since he knows she is as broken and confused as he is. Unrequited love is torture. _

"_I'm sorry" Quinn whispers again. But before Puck can say anything she disappears from the couch, into her room. _

_~Present~_

"I'm not mad at her," Rachel says softly, lifting herself off the ground to brush herself off. Puck smirks.

"What?" Rachel asks in confusion, glaring at Puck.

"You look hot rubbing your butt like that babe" Puck tells her, raising an eyebrow suggestively, earning a smack on the arm from Rachel.

"Ow! Okay anyway, why aren't you mad at Quinn? I would think you would be beating her ass during a sexy chick fit" Puck says honestly, earning another smack.

"I'm not mad because I know what it is like to love Finn," she says simply, "I kissed him twice when he was with Quinn. Actually, he kissed me one of those times"

"Wait, what?" Puck exclaims, jumping off the ground despite the protest his aching thighs are giving him.

"What? First time was after that…Push It debacle, and the second time was after I had quit the Glee club. You guys needed me back. I remember you saying I made you want to light yourself on fire but I could sing" Rachel says pointedly, raising a judgmental eyebrow towards Puck. Puck flushes but ignores the comment.

"So you are saying Finn cheated on Quinn with you, but threw a chick fit when he found out Quinn cheated on him?" Puck yells furiously, running his hand through his mohawk. He can tell immediately that this was the wrong thing to say since Rachel's face grows livid and she takes a step closer to him to poke a finger into his chest.

"Finn may have had a _brief _kiss with me twice, but it was hardly with Quinn's _best friend_. And let me remind it was a _kiss_ nothing more. It wasn't as if we had slept together or something despicable like that. And I didn't get _pregnant _with a child and lie about the father" Rachel spits, shoving him backwards so hard, he actually stumbled. Unable to think of an appropriate response, Puck simply hangs his head. He hears Rachel sigh.

"I'm sorry, Noah. That was uncalled for. You have to remember despite the pain he has caused I still do love Finn. God help me."

"It's okay, Rach. Lord knows I deserve it. Have you…talked to Finn?" Puck asks cautiously, making sure not to look at her.

"He only called me every three minutes the entire night. I ignored the call every time" Rachel snorts, kicking her shoe roughly against the ground.

"Do you think, maybe, you should talk to him? I mean, it help to hear his side of the story" Puck suggests, subconsciously moving to protect his arm and his nuts.

"Eventually maybe," Rachel says stiffly, "But as I right now, I am perfectly content is simply despising everything him." Puck raises his hands in defeat.

"Fair enough. Now, can we please walk the rest of the way? I am not in shape enough for this. At all."

"Noah Puckerman, are you loosing your badassness?"

"Fuck no. Badasses don't jog"

"Whatever you say. You are such a softie" Rachel teases, darting away from his giggling.

"What? Get your ass back here Berry!" Noah growls and sprints after her, catching her easily. He grabs her around the waist and throws her over his shoulder, carrying her towards the pond across the street.

"What was that, Rachel?" Puck asks, attempting to mask the smile sneaking onto his face by Rachel's screams of protest and her fists pounding defiantly against his back.

"Noah Puckerman, put me down!" she shrieks, legs kicking wildly.

"Say I'm badass!" he counters, tightening his hold on her.

"Fine! You are badass!" Rachel says frantically, approaching closer to the pond.

"Thank you," Puck says, satisfied and places Rachel back on the ground.

"You are a Neanderthal, Noah Puckerman," Rachel hisses, straightening out her outfit, but the corners of her mouth can't help but sneak upwards.

"Uh-huh, and you love it" Puck smirks, throwing an arm carelessly over her shoulders.

Rachel rolls her eyes but does not argue.

"Can I ask you something Noah?"

"Yeah. No promises I'll answer"

"When we were dating, were you really going to break up with me?

"…"

"Noah?"

"I said I might not answer."

"Please?"

"Fuck you and those damn puppy dog eyes. Fine, I didn't plan on dumping you. You were like, not that bad a girlfriend. Except for the whole no sex part."

"Thank you"

"For what?"

"Saying I wasn't a bad girlfriend. That means hopefully Finn didn't cheat because I was annoying"

"Nah, trust me that wasn't it. I was best friend's with the douche since kindergarten. He was head over heels for you. He was just confused. That happens to him sometimes"

"I suppose. Maybe one day I will forgive him"

"You will"

Rachel stops in her tracks, realizing they have come to her house.

"Hey Noah?"

"Yes, Rachel?" Puck responds, smirking.

"Thank you. For hanging out with me" she says shyly, looking at the ground.

"No problem," he mumbles, feeling uncomfortable, "Honestly, it was pretty fun. Who knew I could have a good time with Rachel Berry that didn't even include making out?" Rachel giggles softly.

"Do you think…maybe…we are friends? Like, really friends" Puck can hear the hope in her voice and see it in her eyes.

"You know, most people don't ask if they are friends" he mutters, really hating the touchy feely moment that has appeared in front of him.

"Oh…sorry. I'm not really sure of the friendship protocol" Rachel mumbles, clearly humiliated. Puck groans, feeling like a jerk.

"No, I'm sorry. I guess it's weird…thinking you've never really had a friend. But look, I guess we are friends."

"Really?" Rachel shrieks, nearly bouncing with excitement.

"Yeah, really. You aren't so bad, Berry" Noah smirks, but then nearly falls backwards when Rachel throws her arms around his neck, slamming against his chest.

"Woah, Berry chill out! You just got your first friend don't kill him!" Puck teases, prying her off his body.

"Sorry," she pants, straightening her clothes, "Over excited. So I was wondering, as my friend, would you like to come over tonight and watch a movie? I was thinking Funny Girl!"

"Is that a musical?" Noah groans, but already knows he can't say no. Not after seeing how he had practically made her life by agreeing to be her friend.

"I will see you at 7!" Rachel exclaims happily, bouncing forward to peck him briefly on the cheek before dashing into her house.

Noah mumbles goodbye, leaning against her porch. He had just befriended Rachel Berry.

And somehow, after that day, they made a habit of jogging together every Saturday morning and having "movie night" every Saturday night. And the craziest part? Puck loved every second of it.

REVIEW! OR I WILL FIND YOU AND DESTROY YOU! J/K, but please review! I will give all reviewers a shout out in my next chapter. And if you PM me (and review) I will advertise your stories if you want!


	3. Chapter 3

So when I said I would update faster if you reviewed did you think I was kidding! And I can do this almost all summer! Except for the beginning of next week and a few weeks in the end of july/beginning of august when I'm on vacation. Thank you for the reviews: **Chelle2911 **(Happy Birthday! Glad to make it better!)**.Wannabe-Fantasy.****angelic .aquarian**and**sassycanuck**! As you probably noticed I am terrible with review replies so I don't really bother. Sorry! Hey, I update the story isn't that enough lol! But continue reviewing! How about this, if I get 5 or more reviews I PROMISE to update by Saturday, possibly earlier. I'm kind of busy Wednesday, Thursday and Friday but I will try. Any less I have no promises. I'm going away Monday to Thursday so sorry, but no reviews then! I won't even have a shower there! I will try to get a chapter up before I leave but no promises unless I get my reviews.

So this chapter is basically just fluff, but I needed to put it in so you can get a feel of their epic friendship. Hope you love it!

Also, I think I figured out how to make those lines in the story so it should be less confusing! I hope they show up!

Disclaimer: I worked for two weeks straight and earned 100 bucks. Turns out, Glee costs a lot more. I still don't own it.

"Noah, I swear to god, if you play one more Kiss song I am going to dismantle your face" Rachel groans, rubbing her temples in disgust. Puck smirks and cranks up the volume.

"Come on Rach, Kiss is fucking boss!" Puck argues back, drumming on the steering wheel.

"They are talentless, disgusting, man-whores" Rachel snaps, reaching into the back seat of Puck's truck to try and find her iPod.

"Nope, you left your iPod at my house" Puck grins happily, pulling onto his street.

"Thank god we're almost there" Rachel sighs in relief, her leg jittering in anticipation, "By the way, thanks for letting me stay at your house…again. I just hate being all alone at my house, it's so scary!"

"Don't worry about it Rach. My mom fucking loves you" Puck grumbles unhappily. Because when you are constantly being compared to Rachel Berry, life really sucks. Since, you know she is perfect.

"I adore your mother also. She is always so nice to me!" Rachel says adoringly, laying her head on Puck's shoulder.

"Psh, yeah nice to _you_. The second you leave she starts asking me why I don't try so hard in glee, and why I don't do so well in school, and why I don't help Sarah with her homework, and why I don't offer to make dinner, and why I don't volunteer at the temple and why I"

"Okay, Noah. I get it." Rachel interrupts in exasperation, clearly thrilled they have finally arrived at his house. Noah smirks and opens the backseat door, slinging Rachel's bags over his shoulder.

"You do know you are staying for five days, not a month?" he asks, gesturing to the two huge duffel bags on his shoulder. Rachel scowls and grabs her backpack (Puck made her get rid of her rolling pink trolley), following Puck into the house.

"I have to be prepared" she mutters, slipping through the front door before Puck can shut it on her.

"RACHEL!" a voice squeals from down the hallway, followed by a brown head of hair shooting down the stairs into Rachel's arms.

"Hey Sarah!" Rachel exclaims, swinging the girl around in the air.

"Sarah, please detach yourself from my best friend. I would rather you didn't suffocate her in your obnoxiousness" Puck grumbles, prying his sister off Rachel. Sarah scowls and wriggles herself free of Puck's grasp.

"Noaaaaah, why can't you be more like Rachel?" Sarah pouts, placing one hand on each hip and stomping her foot angrily against the ground. She looks like a mini Rachel.

"That's it, you two are spending too much time together." Puck grumbles, chucking Sarah over her shoulder and throwing her onto the couch, "C'mon Rach let's go to my room, away from the twerp"

Rachel rolls her eyes but follows Puck, smiling in apology to Sarah who is now glaring at Puck, but quickly gets distracted by iCarly.

"Noah, you should be nicer to your sister" Rachel chides, falling onto his bed while he tosses her duffels into the corner of his room.

"No, I'm acting the way a brother should. You need to stop raising the standards for teenagers. Most of us aren't like you" Puck informs her falling onto the bed so his head lands in her lap.

"You do realize in a matter of months you are going to be a father" she says softly, running a hand through his hair. Puck sighs.

"Yeah, but I don't know if I'm going to be a dad. I mean, Quinn won't even talk about it with me. She just says she doesn't know and starts sobbing about how I don't appreciate her or some shit like that" Puck mumbles unhappily, sitting up.

"Well that would be her pregnancy hormones. You just have to put up with her. But Noah, are you sure you want to keep that baby? Giving it away wouldn't make you like your father, you know that right?" Rachel said softly, placing a hand over his.

"I want to keep her," he says firmly, flipping his hand over under Rachel's to give it a squeeze, "she is my daughter. I need to keep her" Rachel sighs and stands up, walking over to Puck's door.

"Well, good luck convincing Quinn" Rachel says briefly, "I'm going to go start dinner. Starving your little sister would not help this whole dilemma of me raising the standards too high"

"See Rach, you making dinner is what's raising the standards!" Puck complains, trailing after her.

"See, now in the preterit the stem changes. And you add the…Noah…Noah? Noah, are you even listening?"

"…what? Oh…yeah I love Wicked"

"Noah Puckerman, I am trying desperately to stop you from flunking out of Spanish 2, but I can't do that if you refuse to pay attention!"

"…what? Oh yeah, mhm"

"NOAH!"

"Uh… si senorita?"

"You are so infuriating!"

"I know, but you love me"

"So not the point!"

"Then what is the point?"

"This midterm, right here!" Rachel gestures furiously to the piece of paper on the table, "If you don't get at least a B on your test tomorrow, you are not going to pass for the year and you will have to repeat the class next year!"

"So? It's fucking Spanish. I'm not gonna major in it or anything" Puck drawls, leaning back in his chair. He hears Rachel let out a strangled cry of exasperation and she shoots up from the table and stomps up the stairs. He hears a door slam closed not long after.

"Nice to know you're mature, Rach!" he shouts angrily after her jumping up and letting his chair fall against the floor, harder than was most likely necessary.

"You infuriate me, Noah Puckerman!" she screeches downstairs, and Puck lets out a hollow laugh.

"And you are just butterflies and rainbows all the fucking time!" Puck cries back, roughly standing out of the chair and stomping into the kitchen.

"You two have a strange friendship. Every time I come home the two of you are at each other's throats" Puck whips around to see Quinn standing at the doorway. He grumbles incoherently.

"What happened this time?" Quinn sighs, sitting down at the counter to face Puck.

"She is being obnoxious" Puck growls, slamming his hand on the counter. He and Quinn had formed a sort of camaraderie. She listened to his shit, he ran out at 4 in the morning to buy her artichokes. He really didn't see her all that much though, since she had formed a new friendship with Mercedes while Puck spent most of his time dealing with Rachel.

"I've noticed normally she is right during the arguments" Quinn smirks, grabbing an artichoke from the overflowing bowl on the counter. Surprisingly, Quinn and Rachel had formed a sort of acquaintanceship. They weren't friends, and probably never would be, but they were civil and almost friendly. The rude names had stopped, the glares had ceased and occasionally they would even team up against Puck. It was to be expected though, since Rachel basically lived at his house.

"She won't stop ragging on my about school! I don't even give a shit" Puck exclaims, throwing his hands wildly in the air.

"So…you are upset with Rachel…because she wants you to succeed in life?" Quinn asks, trying to keep the smiling from playing onto her face.

"I…shut up Quinn," Puck mumbles, turning so his back is to her.

"Maybe if you paid attention in school you would have a comeback" Quinn teased in a sing-song voice, disappearing into her room.

"Shit," Puck swears unhappily, clomping up the stairs.

"BAD WORD" Sarah shrieks from the living room, unknowing to the fact Puck is flipping her off.

Puck climbs the last step as slowly as he possibly can, trying to delay the inevitable. He hates apologizing to Rachel, partly because she is even more obnoxious when she is mad, and also because it reminds how much he doesn't deserve her as his best friend.

"Rachel?" he calls quietly, knocking on the door. The most fucked up part is it's his door. She has claimed his bedroom. He can't duck out now, because then he has to sleep on the fucking couch. He hears an angry sniffle.

"Rach, please open the door? I'm sorry okay. I know I'm kind of an ass, but I hate talking about school because I know I'm barely gonna graduate and I'm not gonna be able to support myself and then you are so fucking smart and you are gonna go to Jullian"

"Julliard" she corrects him tearfully. He lets an inaudible relieved sigh, since the fact she is talking is a really good thing.

"And I'm gonna be stuck here and I don't know…it kind of sucks" he mumbles. Suddenly the door is flung open and Rachel Berry is standing in front of him, pure anger on her face.

_Shit, _Puck thinks.

"Noah Eli Puckerman, I do not want to hear you pitying yourself ever again. You are one of the brightest and most talented people I know. Why do you think I spend so much attempting to realize your potential? Noah if you can just focus, I know you can do amazingly" Rachel finally exhales, and looks at him with pride beaming in her eyes. Puck rolls his eyes and engulfs her in a hug. She is tiny, so he has to be careful not to squish her. She giggles and wraps her arms around him in return.

"He doesn't deserve you as a best friend, you know that right Rachel" Quinn's voice suddenly cuts through the air. Rachel chuckles, disentangling herself from Puck.

"I know," Rachel chirps, patting Puck's cheek, "but luckily I love him anyway"

"Aw, Rachel looooves me" Puck gushes jokingly, squishing Rachel against his chest again, eliciting a giggle from her and scoff from Quinn.

They hear the jangle of keys and the opening of a door.

"Oh, Rachel are you here?" an excited voice calls from downstairs. Puck scoffs.

"Rachel? She is the first thing you ask about mom? What about, oh I don't know, you're son?"

"Of course I'm here Mrs. Puckerman!" Rachel calls downstairs, turning to move to meet his mother.

"Oh, wonderful! And you started dinner! Noah, you can learn a thing or two from Rachel. Actually, you could learn everything you need to know from Rachel" Aviva smirks, patting Puck's cheek.

"And you thought I was exaggerating," Puck mumbled grumpily under his breath to Rachel, who simply smiles and moves to take Aviva's coat.

"Noahhh!" Rachel whines, knocking impatiently on the bathroom door, "You have been in there forever! I need to pee!"

"Hold your bladder, Rach, I'm almost done" Puck assures her through the door. He can hear her bouncing from one foot to the other

"Noah please!" she begs, slamming her fist against the door.

"See why I share the bathroom with Aviva and Sarah?" Quinn chuckles, wandering past the bathroom.

"Dammit, Noah, if you don't get out of there right now I am going to break this door down and force you out" Rachel cries desperately, jiggling the doorknob frantically.

"Fine!" Puck grumbles and throws the door open, only to feel Rachel shove him out of the way to dart into the bathroom, "Nice to know your bladder is more important than your best friend's personal hygiene!"

After about 10 minutes, Rachel emerges and enters Puck's room where he is currently residing, with her hair in a brain down her back and her upper body covered in Puck's McKinley High football shirt and a pair of her sweatpants.

"You are a giant" Rachel comments, gesturing to the shirt she is currently wearing.

"Then wear your own shirt!" Puck retorts, pulling his own shirt off.

"But I forgot!" she whines, digging through her bags.

"You packed every belonging you own, but you forgot your pajamas?" Puck asks in disbelief, flopping onto his bed.

"Oh stop," Rachel chastises, darting over to his side of the bed and begins to fiddle with the alarm clock.

"No, Rach, I am not getting up at 6 in the fucking morning again. School starts at 8:30…so we need to get up promptly at 8:25" Puck smirks.

"Noah, we need to maintain a healthy body and mind and getting up at 6 o'clock and exercising immediately is a wonderful way to have a healthful lifestyle" Rachel explains, finally moving away from the clock and collapsing onto the bed, draping herself over Puck. Puck groans and drags her to the other side of the bed.

"You are fucking nuts, you know that?" Puck sighs, switching off the lights. Rachel giggles, curling up against his chest.

"Luckily you loooove me" she chuckles, patting his chest.

"There is something seriously wrong with me, but yeah I actually do" Puck mumbles, kissing the crown of her head and pulling her tightly against him. He knows it's kind of weird they share a bed every time she stays over or he goes over there, but they just kind of do. He doesn't have enough room in his house for her to stay anywhere else and surprisingly there is no sexual tension. Well, Puck thinks she's one hot piece of ass but he actually wouldn't have sex with her. He loves in a completely platonic way.

"Can I ask you something?" Puck asks quietly, feeling her shift on his arm to face him.

"Of course Noah" Rachel says softly, furrowing her brows.

"Have you made any progress with Finn?" he murmurs, idly playing with a strand of her hair. He feels Rachel stiffen. For the past month, Finn has been more or less off limits for discussion. He isn't out of the picture though. He called Rachel constantly for two weeks after the incident, with no avail. He waited for her at her locker everyday but Rachel made sure Puck was there to fend him off. He left her notes (usually unreadable due to spelling errors), flowers (which were clearly picked from someone's front yard, one bouquet had a bug in it) and piles of homemade goods (every single treat was completely inedible). But as far as Puck knew, she still refused to talk to him.

"A little. I actually talked to him yesterday" she mumbles, avoiding Puck's eyes.

"Oh" he says softly, trying to disguise the hurt he felt for her not telling him.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you, I'm still contemplating it. He basically told me he was sorry and he still loves me. He said kissing Quinn didn't mean anything, it was just a spur of the moment mistake and old feelings." Puck feels a tear hit his chest and quickly tightens his hold around Rachel, pulling her against him.

"I know you still love him" he whispers in her ear, gently cradling her.

"Why can't I just forget about him!" she cries softly into his chest, "I think about him constantly! I miss him!"

"You are going to have to let him back in one day, Rach" Puck tells her gently.

"Well, today isn't that day" Rachel says stubbornly, eliciting an amused chuckle from Puck.

"That's my girl" he says softly, giving her one last kiss on the cheek before letting sleep overtake him.

**A/N: **Hope you enjoyed! Now, REVIEW! Pleaaaase?

Also just a random note, I don't know if any of you like Adam Lambert or follow him but in case you do I highly encourage you to contact me. I am kind of a ridiculously huge fan. If you have any questions about his tour (the Glamnation tour, currently underway), his album (For Your Entertainment, certified gold in February, released Nov. 23 2009, RCA management), his journey on Idol (season 8, 2009 runner-up) or anything at all feel free to PM me or tweet me (Twitter name on my profile!) Chances are I will have the answer!

Much love!


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